Lanvin Men S/S 13

For Spring 2013, Lanvin menswear designers Lucas Ossendrijver and Alber Elbaz went for a stark black-and-white palette, paring the collection down for a focus on cut and texture rather than the rich colors the house has always employed to such pleasing effect. In a season where hues have run rampant, it was refreshing on the last day of Paris Fashion Week to see designs that emphasized contour and shape, the monochromatism a rebuke of sorts to those who need flashy bright highlighter shades to attract attention. There was a new looseness to the season, with sweeping pleated wide-legged trousers and oversized anoraks that still maintained a strict rigor despite their roominess. The boys had their bangs swept forward and the sides of their heads buzzed for a look in keeping with the overall hard-edged rocker aesthetic, their jaws clenched in determination as they tramped down the metal runway to a New Wave pulse. The tone was more restrained than we have seen from Lanvin in the past, the regular ebullience traded in here for a sober-minded precision. But that’s not to say Ossendrijver abandoned all the individualistic tweaks that make him one of the most endlessly innovative menswear designers working today. There was a crowded floral print on Anders Hayward’s two-piece ensemble that was a playful change of course, as were the various closing looks in sheer nylon or bright metallics. The show was a study of contrasts, in terms of volumes, fabrics, and cuts, which resulted in a collection that managed to find a cohesion in the stunning technical ability that manifested itself in variously opposing ways. It was a slick manifesto for Spring that went sharply against what we have seen elsewhere this season, proof yet again that Ossendrijver and Elbaz are well aware that they can call their own shots.

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